Imaginal Disc Abnormalities in Lethal Mutants of
            <i>Drosophila</i>

Shearn, Allen; Rice, Thomas B.; Garen, Alan; Gehring, Walter

doi:10.1073/pnas.68.10.2594

Cited by 115 publications

(54 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…The ash2 (absent, small, or homeotic discs 2) gene is a member of the trx-G discovered, together with ash1, in a screen for late larval͞early pupal lethals that had imaginal discs abnormalities (6)(7)(8)(9). The ASH2 protein has a proline-, glutamic acid-, serine-, and threonine-rich region sequence characteristic of short-lived proteins, a putative double zinc-finger domain, a bipartite nuclear localization signal, and a SPRY domain (10).…”

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confidence: 99%

Transcriptional network controlled by the trithorax-group gene ash2 in Drosophila melanogaster

Beltrán

Serras²,

Pérez-Villamil³

et al. 2003

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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The transcription factor absent, small, or homeotic discs 2 (ash2) gene is a member of the trithorax group of positive regulators of homeotic genes. Mutant alleles for ash2 are larval/pupal lethals and display imaginal disc and brain abnormalities. The allele used in this study is a true mutant for the trithorax function and lacks the longest transcript present in wild-type flies. In an attempt to identify gene targets of ash2, we have performed an expression analysis by using cDNA microarrays. Genes involved in cell cycle, cell proliferation, and cell adhesion are among these targets, and some of them are validated by functional and expression studies. Even though trithorax proteins act by modulating chromatin structure at particular chromosomal locations, evidence of physical aggregation of ash2-regulated genes has not been found. This work represents the first microarray analysis, to our knowledge, of a trithorax-group gene

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confidence: 99%

Transcriptional network controlled by the trithorax-group gene ash2 in Drosophila melanogaster

Beltrán

Serras²,

Pérez-Villamil³

et al. 2003

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…Ash2 accumulates uniformly in imaginal discs, fat body cells and salivary glands (Adamson and Shearn, 1996). Loss-of-function alleles of this gene cause homeotic transformations (LaJeunesse and Shearn, 1995;Shearn, 1974;Shearn et al, 1987;Shearn, 1989;Shearn et al, 1971) and downregulation of Hox genes (Beltran et al, 2003;LaJeunesse and Shearn, 1995), in addition to severe abnormalities in the wing, such as reduction of intervein and enhancement of vein tissues (Adamson and Shearn, 1996;Amorós et al, 2002). To gain more insight into the function of ash2, we examined whether vein-and intervein-specific genes and vein positioning genes act as putative targets of ash2 function.…”

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confidence: 99%

Activation and repression activities ofash2inDrosophilawing imaginal discs

2004

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Polycomb (PcG) and trithorax (trxG) group genes are chromatin regulators involved in the maintenance of developmental decisions. Although their function as transcriptional regulators of homeotic genes has been well documented, little is known about their effect on other target genes or their role in other developmental processes. In this study, we have used the patterning of veins and interveins in the wing as a model with which to understand the function of the trxG gene ash2 (absent, small or homeotic discs 2). We show that ash2 is required to sustain the activation of the intervein-promoting genes net and blistered (bs) and to repress rhomboid(rho), a component of the EGF receptor (Egfr) pathway. Moreover, loss-of-function phenotypes of the Egfr pathway are suppressed by ash2 mutants, while gain-of-function phenotypes are enhanced. Our results also show that ash2 acts as a repressor of the vein L2-organising gene knirps (kni), whose expression is upregulated throughout the whole wing imaginal disc in ash2 mutants and mitotic clones. Furthermore, ash2-mediated inhibition of kni is independent of spalt-major and spalt-related. Together, these experiments indicate that ash2 plays a role in two processes during wing development: (1)maintaining intervein cell fate, either by activation of intervein genes or inhibition of vein differentiation genes; and (2) keeping kni in an off state in tissues beyond the L2 vein. We propose that the Ash2 complex provides a molecular framework for a mechanism required to maintain cellular identities in the wing development.

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“…A number of genes of this type have been identified in screens for late larval or pupal lethals (Shearn et al 1971;Shearn and Garen 1974;Kiss et al 1976). One particularly interesting class of genes is that required for the development of a subset of imaginal discs (for review, see Shearn 1978).…”

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confidence: 99%

apterous, a gene required for imaginal disc development in Drosophila encodes a member of the LIM family of developmental regulatory proteins.

Cohen¹,

McGuffin²,

Pfeifle³

et al. 1992

Genes Dev.

357

243

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The apterous (ap) gene is required for the normal development of the wing and haltere imaginal discs in Drosophila melanogaster. ap encodes a new member of the LIM family of developmental regulatory genes. The deduced amino acid sequence of ap predicts a homeo domain and a cysteine/histidine-rich domain known as the LIM domain. In these domains ap is highly similar to the mec-3 and lin-11 proteins of Caenorhabditis elegans and to the vertebrate insulin enhancer-binding protein isl-1. ap is presumably required for transcriptional regulation of genes involved in wing and haltere development. The nature of the defects in homozygous null mutant flies is consistent with the pattern of ap expression in the larval imaginal discs, ap is also expressed in a complex pattern in the embryo, including portions of the peripheral nervous system (PNS) and central nervous system (CNS). A requirement for ap expression in the larval and adult CNS may be the underlying cause of the defects in hormone production and vitellogenesis described for ap mutations.

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Imaginal Disc Abnormalities in Lethal Mutants of Drosophila

Cited by 115 publications

References 5 publications

Transcriptional network controlled by the trithorax-group gene ash2 in Drosophila melanogaster

Transcriptional network controlled by the trithorax-group gene ash2 in Drosophila melanogaster

Activation and repression activities ofash2inDrosophilawing imaginal discs

apterous, a gene required for imaginal disc development in Drosophila encodes a member of the LIM family of developmental regulatory proteins.

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